Rep. Ed Markey doesn’t understand free markets at all.
Markey writes in The Hill:
It might surprise Americans to learn that in 2011, our nation’s No. 1 export was our fuel.
That’s right. For the first time in 62 years, since Harry Truman was president, the United States was a net exporter of oil products. An estimated $88 billion worth of gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other petroleum products was sent to overseas markets last year.
Meanwhile, the price of gasoline is up 37 cents per gallon compared to a year ago, according to AAA. Consumers are now being tipped upside down at the pump all year long, not just during the summer driving months…
Dear Junk: I DID check-out the proof, but Markey sounded sober, reasoned, and raised several points that maybe should NOT be left to the Republicans, even though I am one. Probably to garantee our vast debt, we were, last year, an oil-EXPORTING country, exporting because the oil companies could get much more money for shipping fuels overseas (by 2-4 times more), than keeping it here, in the ‘States, where we would have it for our cars, trucks, planes(jets), and businesses. He was VERY WRONG about our reserves, as we hold amounts as large as all of the Middle East countries, rather than 2% of reserves as Markey was saying. He minimized the pipeline jobs numbers, saying they were only a fraction of 120K, and that those were temporary. So who’s “fibbing”? Info we get from this site, or Markey? I think USA oil should STAY HERE, to maintain OUR lifestyle, but the Oil companies would scream about that, if Markey’s correct. Worse, if Markey’s correct (–except for Reserves, I KNOW he’s wrong, there), then Nobama is still WRONG to shut-off supplies from leases un-drilled, but he might be RIGHT that Big Oil is robbing the USA taxpayer, possibly. I think, beyond Buffet’s hatred of a pipeline that’d replace his railroads, the pipeline could also shift water in times of floods, moving it WEST from places where it’s too much locally( North, North-West, and the East,–all areas that had flooding). Republicans DO want clean air & water, but we’re unwilling to tax our citizens enough to get it to the point, almost, of distilled-water, which would be a HUGE waste of money. Also, I don’t think our coal should be “beaten-up” because the Red Chinese NEED it, and if they will BUY it, we can service/reduce our Trillions of debt that they hold, and we’re paying interest on. I fear I’ve muddied the waters, a little.